The Importance of Quality Sound Design in Media
Sound design is a crucial aspect in elevating your video production to a new level of entertainment.
To celebrate the partnership between Ricci Design in Motion® and Amplitudo Sound Agency, we will highlight the main benefits of using quality sound design in media production.
Let’s have a look!
Creating a 3D video is a complex process that requires a lot of attention to detail. High-quality sound design is one of the most important and underrated aspects of a professional 3D video. We often focus so much on visuals that we underrate how much sounds and music influence our minds!
Below, some benefits that quality sound design can bring to our video:
Enhancing Viewer Immersion
Quality sound design can help to immerse the viewer in the 3D world, guiding how they feel when watching a video. When sound is carefully designed and mixed to match the visuals, it can make the viewer feel like they are actually in the scene, taking them into a new dimension. This creates a more engaging and memorable experience, which is crucial to a successful 3D video.
Adding a Narrative Aspect
Sound design also has a narrative aspect, encouraging viewers to ponder the evolution of the story. Music can create a convincing atmosphere of time and place, build tension that plays with the listener’s expectations, or serve as an exceptional background filler.
Guiding Viewer Attention
Another advantage of quality sound design is its ability to guide the viewer’s attention. Sound design directs the viewer’s focus where it needs to be by using sound effects and music to highlight crucial elements. This can be especially important in complex 3D scenes where visual elements might compete for attention.
Creating Emotional Impact
Quality sound design can also help to create a more emotional impact. By carefully selecting music and using sound effects to create a certain mood or build drama in a scene, the viewer can be emotionally engaged by the video. This is particularly important in advertising or marketing videos, where the goal is to connect with the audience on a deeper level.
Expert Insights from Amplitudo Sound Agency
Below, read the opinion of Daniele Prina, one of the founders of Amplitudo Sound Agency, about the crucial aspects of working on a music project for digital advertising.
What are the main aspects of designing sound for a digital campaign?
When designing sound for a digital campaign, there are a few key elements to consider.
Firstly, the purpose of the campaign: it’s essential to understand the goals that need to be achieved and the target audience that needs to be reached.
Secondly, creativity: once the purpose is established, we focus on the creative aspects that will guide us through the production phase, such as the genre of the music composition, the style of the sound effects, and the type of voiceover, if applicable.
Thirdly, technical specifications: although it may seem trivial, it’s crucial to adhere to technical specifications to deliver industry-standard master files.
What is the hardest task you usually encounter when doing sound design?
The hardest task often occurs before we start creating the actual sounds or during the initial draft stages, and that is conveying our vision and creative concept to our client.
This challenge sometimes leads to difficulties in balancing the client’s requests with our proposals, as we always aim to push boundaries and raise the bar.
When this balance is hard to achieve (fortunately, it’s rare), we look for new ways to communicate our vision from the pre-production phases.
How do you usually solve it?
We typically use a lot of references: original music and soundtracks from artists we admire, successful and inspiring digital content from competitors, and even our previous work if it’s relevant to the new project.
We present these references actively, not just by sharing links; we explain why they are great sources of inspiration and how we plan to use them as starting points.
This approach helps both us and the client define the creative direction early on, making subsequent phases smoother and faster.
What are the main criteria and principles you use for effective sound design?
First, uniqueness: we strive to create unique sounds, either from scratch or by manipulating and layering sounds from our own library. While we use certain patterns and techniques frequently, they help us establish and maintain our style.
Second, fast execution: especially at the start of the production phase, we aim to produce initial drafts quickly. This approach forces us to focus intensely on finding the right sonic pattern while allowing enough time for experimentation before sending the drafts.
Third, precision: it may seem obvious, but precision in organizing every aspect of the work is crucial. This includes easily accessible shared folders, clear file naming, concise emails within specific threads, and so on. While often underestimated, these practices are vital for us.
Final Thoughts
Overall, there are many hidden advantages to using quality sound design in 3D video production.
By carefully designing and mixing sound to match the visuals, directing the viewer’s attention, and creating an emotional impact, your 3D video can transition from a simple visual experience into a truly immersive and engaging one.
So, if you’re working on a 3D video, don’t overlook the importance of sound design! : )
G.Ricci
